February 1, 2012

An interview with David Rotenberg, author of "The Placebo Effect"

I had the
opportunity to read an advance review copy of David Rotenberg's latest
novel, The Placebo Effect, in preparation for this blog tour (thanks to Annaliese at Simon & Schuster Canada for setting it up).
My review of the thriller just went up on the blog yesterday, so be
sure to check that out if you're interested in my opinion on the
book. There are also a number of other reviews and guest spots along
David's blog tour I encourage you to check out, too.

For now, here's a
quick blurb about what the book is about, followed by interview with
David. Enjoy!

Decker Roberts has the dangerous gift of detecting the truth
(synaesthesia). But when his carefully compartmentalized life starts
to fall apart he has to go on the run and figure out why he’s being
targeted. There’s also a government agency hunting him down who
seems to know everything about him and other people of “his kind.”
How will Decker find out which truth was endangering his life? Who
betrayed him and revealed all his secrets? Decker needs to find
answers quickly, before knowing the truth turns from a gift into a
deadly curse.

Gef: With your experience as an acting
teacher, that facet of Decker Roberts' backstory seems easy enough to
source. But what about the synesthesia? Where did that come from?

David: I’ve always written about
people with special abilities, the five Zhong Fong novels are
about a man with exceptional talent in a world where special talents
are not honored. When I directed the first Canadian play in the
People’s Republic of China the first thing the Artistic Director of
that theatre said to me was, “You must remember that you can always
be replace”-a fine hello, how was your flight!

Synesthesia simply gives an access to
the ‘other.’ There is a lot of material on synesthesia; some of
the most interesting is actually the documentary on Mr. Tammet and
his extraordinary abilities. There is also a gentleman called the
human camera, you can find YouTube stuff on both, and BBC
documentaries. As well Mr. Tammet has an interesting book.

Rainman was based loosely on the man
who Mr. Tammet thought of as his spiritual father-he passed away a
few years back.

Gef: Considering how the majority
of your previous novels are set in China (the Zhong Fong series), was
writing a novel set--at least in part--in Canada a homecoming of
sorts?

David: Yes. But writing about Toronto
is difficult. I was born and raised here but I left for 15 years.
When I returned it was a much better place than when I left, but
still hard to write about. Over 50% of the people in the GTA weren’t
born in Canada. We, in Toronto, are creating Toronto as it goes. That
makes it hard for a writer since in a very real sense there is no
there yet, it’s coming, it’s growing, but it’s not there.
That’s both exciting and exasperating. Hence, I have written about
only really one small part of Toronto, The Junction, where I have
lived for 22 years.

Gef: If you had a form of synesthesia
similar to Decker's, would you be inclined to think of it as an
endowment or an affliction?

David: If you get a gift you'll always
have to pay something for it. My Russian grandfather was forever
announcing "free is the most expensive."

Gef: Personally, I have what I consider
a healthy distrust of pharmaceutical corporations, especially when
those American ads reel off the litany of astounding side effects. In
your research, how was your confidence bolstered or shaken towards
such companies?

David: I did a ton of investigation
into the pharma industry for a previous idea that never came to
fruition. It let me to a healthy skepticism of the entire thing, but,
and let’s be honest here, when I have a headache I reach for the
ibuprofen in a second and am duly grateful for its healing effects.

The plot about placebos is not really a
jab at the pharma business; it has more to do with the unrelenting
pursuit of cash. I mean, how many cigars can you smoke at one time?
What can a bar possibly do to make a martini worth $22? Nothing.

I’ve dealt with a lot of people who
have way more money than brains, and haven’t a clue what to do with
it. I have, though, also dealt with people who realize that money
only really buys you one thing-freedom…and the ability to help
others. There are such gracious folks, honest.

Gef: Who is better at taking
instructions: actors or fictional characters? Did you find your
characters did what you wanted from them, or did any of them surprise
you as you wrote the book?

David: Good actors make directors,
“dance with them, never on them.” It’s a phrase that comes from
the dance world. Good actors are independent creatures who have a
healthy disrespect for both text and directors, especially directors
who think they know everything. Characters sit in your brain pan, and
twiddle, sometimes to no end, sometimes to things you’d never think
of in a thousand year.